Financial wizards split over default risk
Two of the country’s financial managers — past and present — cannot agree on whether the national economy is still in the red or out of danger. In interviews with private media broadcast on Tuesday night, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and his predecessor Miftah Ismail put forward their views on the state of Pakistan’s economy: while Mr Dar argued that the country’s performance criteria were up to the mark and “complete” for the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) ninth review, Mr Ismail insisted that the default risk wouldn’t subside unless the Fund came to the table, Dawn.com reported. Meanwhile, borrowers like Pakistan have failed to persuade the IMF to review the surcharges it collects from them on loans that are not repaid quickly. The Fund’s executive board and these middle- and lower-income countries discussed the issue on Monday but failed to reach a conclusion. Pakistan, Argentina and other borrowers want the IMF to drop — or at least temporarily waive — the surcharges, which the IMF estimates will cost affected borrowers $4 billion on top of interest payments and fees from the start of the Covid-19 pandemic through the end of 2022.